Unsafe Haven (5 page)

“Luna, move it or lose it.” Denn wrapped sandwich halves in plastic and shoved them into an insulated lunch tote, added a container of unsweetened orange juice and a baggie filled with cherry tomatoes and carrot sticks. Luna would either toss them out or, being the enterprising child she was, sell them to one of the other kids. This time of year, fresh vegetables were damned expensive, too. But he had to try getting decent food in her instead of the junk she preferred to eat.

“Luna, let’s go. Five minutes. Or else you hoof it,” he called out. There hadn’t been a peep from her in at least a half hour, which either meant pouting or she’d gone back to sleep. He’d have to drag her out of bed by her toes. It wouldn’t be the first time.

“I’m sick.” The faint words floated along the hallway, uttered in a voice like doom.

Denn huffed out an impatient breath and set the tote aside. He strode down the hallway into Luna’s room, stepped around clothes and shoes scattered over the floor. The mound of blankets on the bed didn’t move, but his baby sister was under there. Denn viewed the lumpy bed, then made a gun of his thumb and index finger, took aim and poked the middle of the lump, hard.

“Oww! Hey!” Up came her head, hair tangled in clumps, eyes blazing. She clutched the blankets and glared at him. “That hurt. And I’m already sick. You’re so mean to me.” The pout was a side bonus, and nobody could do it better than Luna.

With a sigh, Denn grabbed the blankets and tugged. She rolled out of them and landed on the floor with an incoherent screech. He was pretty sure a few of her screeches contained cuss words.

He snagged her arm and hauled her back onto the bed, then held her when she tried to scuttle away. “You’re not sick. I dosed you well enough last night to make sure your damned banana split gorge-fest the other day wouldn’t land you in Aniak.” He shook her shoulder once, for emphasis. “But if you want, we’ll just test you right now and see what your levels say. Then I’ll dose you again, and you’ll still go to school. You got me?”

“I hate you! Mom wouldn’t make me go when I feel this bad.” Her dark eyes, so like their mother’s, filled with tears. Even as she twisted her shoulder to break his hold, she leaned into him and let the waterworks come. Denn stroked her hair as she cried against his chest.

“I know, I know, Luney-Boo.” His pet name for her usually got her back up, but today she only sobbed harder and clung to him. “I miss her, too. Some days it hurts like hell.” He cupped his palm around her cheek and raised her drenched face. Puffy circles ringed each eye. She’d probably tossed all night long, despite the extra meds and suffering through the upchuck session she’d had as soon as they’d gotten home from the Four Hills Inn.

He wiped some of her tears away with his thumb. “She would be so mad to see you mistreat your poor tummy like this, Luna. You’ve got to take better care of yourself and you have to be more responsible. Most grown men couldn’t digest the amount of sugar you scarfed down.”

She sniffed and rubbed her wet face on his shirt. “I know, and I’m sorry.” She eased away and misery swam in her eyes as they met his. “But I really am sick. I feel awful. I think I should stay home.”

“Do you have a test today? Don’t lie. I can call Beverly in the admin office and ask her.”

“I don’t have any tests. I have a spelling bee but Miss Toomie can give me a make-up. Please, Denn. I’m so sick.” She wrapped an arm around her stomach as if to emphasize.

She did look a bit green under the pallor. And last night she’d puked twice, minutes after he’d dosed her. Most likely none of her meds had gotten far enough inside her to do much good. He hoped to hell she’d learned her lesson, but knew she’d do it again as soon as the opportunity arose.

Giving up, he laid her on the messy blankets and pulled the bedspread over her shoulders. “Sleep it off. I’ll let Beverly know you’re out for the day. You’ll go to school tomorrow and get all your make-up work. And lay off the junk food, Luna. Savvy?” He stared her down as she struggled to assert herself, and hid a smile when she grumbled under her breath.

“Yeah. Savvy.” She snuggled into the pillows and closed her eyes. Denn rubbed his hand over her hair and turned to leave, already thinking ahead to his busy day.

“Denn? Sorry I pigged out and worried you.” Sadness tinged her voice.

He smiled at his sister, so young and defenseless in her bed. “It’s all right, baby. Just don’t do it again. That’s all I ask. And call Jo if you need anything, okay?”

“Okay.”

A few minutes later he nosed his Silverado along the gravel pit road toward town. The truck shuddered on startup but the engine warmed quickly enough and the heater blew plenty of toasty air. It would make a great vehicle for Luna when the time came, but for now he was happy to have Kendall drive it. Not that he wanted her beholden to him. He just preferred she didn’t get stranded out at The Post because of no wheels. Besides, it was his job to take care of his friends and neighbors.

He sure hoped he could soon count her as a friend. She tugged at him. There was a wariness in those soft brown eyes, a tightness around her full lips which spoke of stress, disappointment. Maybe hard times. He could relate, since he’d lived with plenty of both. The loss of his parents, years of tough college courses, and then seeing his dream slide down the drain . . . all of it took a toll.

Daily worry about Luna’s health, and her increased rebelliousness, hadn’t helped any. He swiped a hand over his gritty eyes, wishing he’d gotten more sleep. But he’d been up with Luna two nights in a row. Maybe she’d feel better today, as well as have learned something from the experience.

He parked in front of the Four Hills and swung out of the high cab, then slipped his hat on. Though he wouldn’t spend much of the day in the office and Stevie was covering for him there, Denn stayed armed and in uniform. He stepped up to the porch just as Kendall opened the door. She froze in the doorway, stared at him, then blushed.

Damn, she’s cute.

He sent her a delighted grin but his voice remained sedate. “Morning, Kendall. You ready to go?”

She frowned at him. “Go where?”

His grin got wider. “Wherever you need to go. Out to the Post, over to New Mina. Wherever. I’m your taxi today.” He gestured toward the truck.

Her eyes rounded in surprise. “But I—you need—what about your Suburban? Isn’t it still being fixed?”

He reached around her and shut the front door, careful not to spook her. “I told you, the truck is yours. I’ll have mine back later on today. Stevie’s covering the station and the citizens of Staamat can survive without me for a while. Where do you want to go?”

Unsmiling, she eyed him. “I don’t like being railroaded, Denn.” He noticed one of her hands opened and closed into a fist. Nerves, tension. Poor girl, she probably had both. He tilted his head as he studied her.
What made you so damned mistrustful, Kendall? Was it a man?

He had an awful suspicion she’d escaped from an abusive relationship, though he had no proof whatsoever. He wanted to ask her but feared alarming her any further.

Maybe someday she’d trust him enough to tell him her story. For now, he caught her hand and dropped the keys into her palm, then closed her fingers around them. “Turn left out of Puffin Circle to Singleton, then stay on Singleton for seven miles. Bear right at the entrance to the zinc mine, drive two more miles. You’ll end up in downtown New Mina. There’s a grocery store on Main. They’ll have whatever you need and they won’t bankrupt you. Balto General is two doors down from there and they sell everything from furniture to grass seed. What they don’t have in stock, they can order.” He stepped back, tipped his hat to her, and started toward the sidewalk.

“Wait. What if I get lost?” Panic spiked her voice. She rushed off the porch and took the steps in one bound, landing on the sidewalk next to him.

Denn struggled to keep the satisfied smile off his face as he turned to her. “Oh, you won’t get lost. Just watch out for moose.”

“M-moose?”

“Sure. They’re everywhere. Sometimes they stand in the middle of the road. Don’t worry, just honk the horn and they’ll eventually move. I wouldn’t roll down the windows, though.” He rubbed his chin in a thoughtful manner.

“What happens if you roll down the windows?”

“Oh, they’ll poke their noses in and sometimes they—well, that won’t happen to you.” He’d go straight to hell for messing with her head, but he couldn’t help himself.

“Sometimes they
what
?” Now she gripped his jacket sleeve with white-knuckled fingers.

He couldn’t stay serious one more second and barked out a laugh. “I’m pulling your leg, Kendall. Honest. There are moose but they won’t come up to the car and usually they move pretty fast if they’re in the road. You don’t have anything to worry about.”

She released his sleeve with a pent-up breath. “That was a mean thing to do, Chief Nulo.” But a smile curved her lips and her eyes had brightened.

He had to fight the impulse to sweep her into his arms and cuddle her. Instead he merely replied, “Yes, it was. So, you want to drive or should I?”

She dropped the keys into his hand. “You drive. I’ll look at the scenery.”

From the window in the front parlor, Wendy Chang clutched the lace curtain in tense fingers as she watched Denn drive away. She’d thought he would come in as he usually did and chat with her before she started her morning housekeeping. She looked forward to having him to herself a few times a week, even though he never stayed more than fifteen or twenty minutes. It was better than nothing.

Instead, he took off with her newest paying guest. Wendy tossed the curtain aside, scowling at the wrinkle she’d made in the delicate lace.

She poured a second cup of coffee, then stood in the middle of the kitchen and sipped it as she pondered the changes she could already sense in her relationship with Denn. She’d been in love with him for years, ever since he returned home from Anchorage. Back then she’d been so confident she’d get him, so sure of herself and her ability to attract him. But from the beginning he’d treated her as a friend, nothing more.

God, he was gorgeous. She’d never known another man who melted her into a puddle the way Denn could. Those glowing, dark-gold eyes. Those full, luscious lips. She’d look at his mouth and imagine what his kiss might taste like. She’d daydream about the breadth of his shoulders and the strength in his arms. He’d never given her a single reason to think he might see her as a woman instead of a buddy. She hated it, but she’d made a vow to herself that one day Denn Nulo would fall for her. It was just a matter of time. In a small town like Staamat she didn’t have to worry about competition, and Denn never showed interest in anyone else.

Until Kendall Martin showed up.

Wendy prided herself on being levelheaded and sensible, yet aggressive enough to attain the things in life she wanted the most. Her determination and business acumen kept the Four Hills afloat even in an unstable economic environment. She went after her desires and never apologized for being tough.

Perhaps she ought to apply those same methods to snaring Denn. Maybe she’d let things slide for too long. After all, she’d never told him of her love. How could he act on something he knew nothing about?

After she took her empty cup to the sink and rinsed it out, she wandered into the powder room off the kitchen and stared at herself in the mirror. Great eyes, a nice smile. She’d always considered herself pretty.

She’d worn her short, black hair spiky for years, preferring the style with her angular, narrow face. Easy to care for, but hardly feminine. Picturing Kendall’s long, golden brown curls, Wendy grimaced.

Without giving herself time to think about it, she flicked on the faucet, scooped water into her palms, and sluiced it over her hair, rinsing out the stiffening gel. She rinsed it again and again until her hair was limp and plastered to her cheeks. The minuscule amount of eye makeup she’d carefully applied a few hours ago had also washed away.

A change to her looks and style would soften her edges, make Denn notice her. She had nothing against Kendall Martin, but neither would she give up her man so easily. She smiled at her reflection. Denn
would
see her differently.

Starting today.

Denn glanced at Kendall for about the tenth time and sniggered. She glared at him.

“It wasn’t funny.” She crossed her arms and pouted. If she’d been standing instead of riding in a truck, she’d have stomped her foot along with the pout.

“It was freaking hilarious, admit it.” He slowed down to swerve around a jagged pothole.

Her lips wanted to quiver into a smile. She wouldn’t allow it, damn it.

A few minutes ago, the impossible—well, impossible in her experience—happened. A moose lumbered onto the narrow gravel road, on her side of the truck, and stood there, as obstinate as any mule. Muttering something to the effect that someone else might come along and not bother to swerve out of its way, Denn slowed down and honked the horn. The animal wouldn’t budge, and just stared at them with those huge eyes and preposterously long eyelashes.

Caught between fear and fascination for the enormous beast, she’d gaped at it. She hadn’t realized she’d pressed her face to the passenger window until she saw the moose do the same on the other side of the glass. The immense creature had moved right up to the truck and nosed the window. As he choked from laughing so hard, Denn commented that from his angle it looked as if they were trying to kiss.

“That moose could have yanked me right out through the window, you know.” Of course it couldn’t, but it was the principle of the thing.

“Yes, I can see it now. The moose would use the button on the outside of the window, roll that sucker down and just reach in and grab you,” Denn replied, straight-faced.

“Don’t make fun of me.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it.” He slowed again and signaled, then turned onto another gravel road. “Actually, it’s probably a town moose.” He jerked his chin toward the smattering of cabins on either side of the road.

“There are town moose? Where do they live?” As soon as she said it, she realized how idiotic she sounded.

Denn loosed a strangled garble as he pointed to a cluster of buildings on the left. “North Star Apartments. They offer free HBO.”